Valve Index: A Comprehensive Review

 

 

 

Since the dawn of modern VR in 2016, two companies, Oculus and Valve, have dominated the development and consumer releases of VR headsets. Now, after three years of quietly spearheading the underlying tracking technology and design for the HTC Vive, Valve has gone hands-on, in the form of the Valve Index.

 

Valve has been characteristically blunt about their goal with this headset. This is not the “bang for your buck” option. Rather, this is their play at dominating the premium, minimal compromise market for Virtual Reality HMDs (Head Mounted Displays).

 

As always, the Gremlin stands ready to put it through its paces.

 

 

If you’ve never owned a headset before, you may think of HMDs  just like any other gear; There’s a set of specs that each one has, and one device will have the best specs in every category.

 

The reality is, VR devices are incredibly complex computer/camera/display hybrids that are pushing multiple technical limits of all those categories at once. As such, every headset that exists today has a set of tradeoffs. What you quickly learn when reading (and writing) about this stuff is that experiential taste varies dramatically. Some people NEED to have the widest field of view possible, but are indifferent to how sharp that view is. Others can’t stand glare, but are happy to feel like they’re wearing a small scuba mask. To give you a clear understanding of my perspective, here’s my ranked list of VR features, from most to least important FOR ME:

 

-Resolution/Optical Clarity

-Tracking Quality

-Comfort

-Sound Quality

-Field of View

-Black Levels/Contrast

-Refresh Rate

-Adjustable IPD (The spacing between the left and right eye displays)

-Wireless

-Glare

 

More than most HMDs, Valve Index truly aims to improve on (almost) every aspect of the VR experience. Here are my reactions to each aspect of the device, as well as a breakdown of how the headset changed my experience in specific games, as well as my overall conclusion.

 

 

 

 

Resolution: Index sports the same 1440×1600 per eye resolution as the Vive Pro (the previous leader in mainstream VR resolution). What’s new is a switch from OLED to LCD display panels, which use a denser sub-pixel arrangement (basically the first gen headsets had an uneven balance of the sub pixels that form Red, Green, and Blue on the display. This change means that Index has about 50% more sub pixels than the Vive Pro. In practice, this has a HUGE impact on how sharp objects look in the virtual world. Objects nearby have reached “real” levels of sharpness, and distant views (like looking out cockpit windows) are substantially improved, although critical eyes will still wish for greater sharpness there.

 

Screen Door Effect: HTC Vive owners know this well. It’s the effect of the dark gaps between pixels becoming visible on the display, resulting in the impression that a window screen has been pressed over your eyeballs. The Vive Pro nearly eliminated SDE, and I’m pleased to say that it’s effectively irrelevant on Index. Yes, if you find a solid white surface and stare at it, you’ll still be able to detect a pattern between the pixels, but in actual use, I literally don’t notice this except when I’m trying to critically evaluate the display.

 

Refresh Rate: Increased display refresh rate is one of the hallmark features of Index. Whereas Oculus actually lowered the maximum RR for Rift S to 80HZ, Index supports the industry standard 90Hz, as well as 80hz, 120HZ and 144HZ. In practice, the effect of the refresh rate improvement is… inconsistent. In some games with substantial fast movement of your hands, head, or view, the effect is truly remarkable. In other experiences, I didn’t really notice the change. Frustratingly, changing the refresh rate requires a reboot of the SteamVR operating software, so you can’t currently designate refresh rates for specific titles. Increasing the RR also has a dramatic impact on performance, as the system needs to generate many more frames per second to match the refresh rate. Even the most powerful graphics cards available today can’t maintain 144HZ in power hungry games, and my 1080Ti and 8700k could barely manage Elite Dangerous at 120HZ on medium-low settings. Most of the time I’ve been operating with the system locked back to 90HZ, as I’d rather not bother swapping back and forth. Users with anything below a GTX 1080 should probably consider this feature off limits until they upgrade their hardware, unless you’re willing to cope with significantly blurrier resolution to compensate.

 

Black Levels: This is my only noteworthy gripe about the main features of Index. The one critical advantage of the OLED panels used in the Vive and original Rift was a naturally deep black, where the pixels could actually turn off to display totally dark scenes. The LCD panels of Index, while beautiful, are substantially worse at displaying black. That said, I’m a diehard Elite Dangerous fan, and I’ve been more than happy to accept this tradeoff for the improvements in clarity it has brought. For high contrast/dark titles that haven’t been explicitly updated for Index, you may need to play with in-game gamma levels, effectively dimming the entire display, to get blacks you’re happy with. Having done that, I’m now happy enough with the blacks, even if I’m not wowed by them like I used to be with the Vive Pro.

 

 

 

Field of View: Another heavily advertised feature, the field of view has been substantially improved for Index. More importantly however, is HOW it’s been improved. Some competing headsets (namely the Pimax products) have opted to change the shape of the displays to make the viewable area inside the headset larger and wider. The issue with this is that it can introduce compatibility problems with older titles, increase the performance penalties on your hardware, and decrease the effective PPI (number of pixels per inch) of your display. Instead, Valve has used some clever engineering to change the spacing and distance between the displays and your eyes. The result is that I can see substantially more in game, without running into any new problems. Day to day, the FOV is a subtle improvement I still regularly notice, and it makes me smile. There’s two caveats to this feature. The maximum field of view cranks the displays so close to your eyes that those with long eyelashes will literally feel how close they are, and it may have you moving back a click. At max setting, you can also see the left and right edges of the displays in your peripheral vision. It’s something I’ve gotten used to, but I do notice it for a bit whenever I change the field of view. Also, glasses wearers will definitely miss out on some of the benefits of this features. Contact lenses are your friends.

 

The Sweet Spot: There’s some confusion and misuse of this term. Here I’m referring to the ideal resting spot for an HMD on your face, where your eyeballs land in the optically perfect point to achieve maximum overall sharpness. New and casual VR users often notice an uncomfortable level of blur with VR, which is caused by a poor fit where they end up looking through a sub-optimal portion of the lenses. Bad news first, the Index sweet spot is fairly small, and you need to be careful to line up your eyes just right. The good news is, it rarely becomes a problem, because the fit of the headset is so phenomenal that, once properly adjusted, I have no difficulty finding and maintaining the sweet spot in front of my eyeballs. Effectively a non-issue here.

 

Edge Clarity: This is why some reviews have called out the Index for a fantastically large sweet spot. What they’re actually referring to is edge clarity, or how sharp the image is as your eye moves toward the edges of the lens. Clarity always drops off somewhat as you look to the edges of the lens, but on Index, it effectively feels like everything in your natural field of vision is in proper focus. This was something that regularly irritated me with the Vive and Vive Pro, and it’s one of the most noticeable visual improvements with Index.

 

Glare: There are two kinds of “glare” in HMDS. The first is where looking at bright lights create a kind of halo around the edges of the frame. The second is where bright light effectively washes out the entire image. Index has a good amount of glare, but it’s a different quality of glare than the Vive, Vive pro, or Oculus Rift. I do notice that there’s a fair amount of glare, but I prefer the QUALITY of that glare, and find it less distracting than prior headsets. I’d caution that as this isn’t something that majorly bothered me in the past, you might find this to be a bigger issue than I do. If the glare of previous headsets wasn’t a major issue for you, I think you’ll be satisfied with Index.

 

 

 

Speakers: This is my personal favorite feature/improvement from Index. The quality of the audio experience from this headset is hilariously fantastic. It feels like a genius got bored, and just kept iterating day after day until they invented the perfect VR headphone. It simply has no right to sound this good. For audiophiles, I’ll say that the frequency range and clarity of the sound is a substantial improvement from prior headsets, but the directionality of the sound is what makes it unreal. Without anything touching your ears, it truly gives the illusion that you’re sitting in a Dolby Atmos movie theater with speakers on every side of you. Early adopters are already asking if Valve will ever release standalone headphones with this design because they love the experience THAT MUCH. I’d buy a pair.

 

Microphone: Not a lot to report here. I haven’t done extensive testing on the mic. I’ve heard reports from others that it sounds notably better than prior HMD mics. Playing games online, no one’s ever had trouble hearing me.

 

 

 

 

Physical Fit: The fit/harness of an HMD is critical, both because an imbalanced load will give you headaches, but also because, as described above, fit affects your ability to get the most out of the displays. The fit of this headset is an 11/10. In weeks of gameplay, it’s never given me a headache, pressed uncomfortably, or had me struggling to keep my eyes in the right spot for the lenses. I have yet to experience “VR face,” where I emerge from my game area with red stripes on my forehead. It includes an optional pad for those of us with diminutive craniums, but despite being somewhat small headed, I haven’t bothered putting it in, as I can’t imagine how it could get more comfortable, but the option might be helpful for some people. Anecdotal reports on the Index subreddit suggest that people with a variety of head sizes will have a similarly positive experience on this front.

 

The Barf Test: Early VR has been challenging for anyone suffering from motion sickness. I’ve never struggled with it, but even I would start to feel slightly dizzy after a couple of hours in the Vive Pro. The combined elements of the Index’s optics and image processing have again eliminated this problem for me. Those who previously got dizzy in games with more challenging free motion will likely find Index to be a revelation if their hardware can maintain a decent frame rate. Even running at 90hz, the improvements Valve has made to reduce image retention in the display has a profoundly steadying effect on the stomach.

 

 

Setup & Requirements: The setup for Index is exactly the same as the Vive, and Vive Pro that came before it. Two “lighthouse” boxes need to be either mounted high on the wall (at least six feet, preferably right at ceiling height facing down). These plug into power adapters, but do not need to connect to your PC. Index is compatible with the first generation tracking stations from Vive, which is what I’ve been using. In my experience, one tracking station is sufficient for “front facing” gameplay, such as seated simulation games, but you’ll want two for any games involving 360 movement. Valve recommends a minimum of two tracking stations. Unlike the original Oculus sensors, unless you’re playing in a exceptionally large space, there’s really no need for more than two.

 

For previous owners of Vive or Vive Pro, you can simply unplug your old headset, and connect the Index.

 

As a side note, for those interested in using multiple headsets in the same space, a single set of tracking stations can power several Index headsets, as the boxes merely project lasers passivly across the space, and the headsets do all the actual tracking calculations on their own.

 

Tracking Quality: Valve’s Lighthouse laser tracking system has always provided me with the best overall tracking experience, and the same is true of Index. I will say that more so than the rift’s constellation cameras, your environment plays a big role in how solid your tracking will be. Keeping lots of reflective objects (like mirrors, glossy picture frames, etc) can make tracking irritatingly inconsistent, and using the original 1.0 Vive base stations, I have had a few moments of controllers drifting into the ether. However, I’ve really made no effort to remove or cover any of the hung frames, errant glasses etc in my room, so I’d wager that the issues I’ve had won’t be a problem for most people. I will say that the sensitivity of the tracking to the environment , at least with Vive 1.0 stations, leaves me with the impression that the Rift S’s onboard tracking is probably closer to Index’s quality than some might think.

 

 

 

 

The Valve Index Controllers, which I’ll continue to refer to as “Knuckles,” are in my top three video game controllers of all time, but they’re not without their quirks.

 

Controller Ergonomics: I’ve been a Nintendo fan since I lost my gaming V-card, in part because they’ve always mastered the ability to make a seemly bizarre shaped controller that perfectly fits your hand. The Knuckles feel like they could’ve been made by the big N. My fairly average size male hands have no trouble reaching for any of the sticks or buttons, and after several years of suffering with the HTC Vive wand controllers, I’m grateful every time I pick these up.

 

Finger Tracking: One of Valve’s big talking points is that these controllers have 87 sensors each, many of which work together to accurately track the position and state of grip for every finger on your hand. This is both the coolest, and least relevant part of these controllers. In the few games that have implemented full finger tracking, it’s deeply immersive and fun to see your hand motions mirrored in such detail, but I’ve only had a couple of games that used this to great effect. Some people have reported issues with the tracking, but I’ve found that once I figured out the proper fit for the controllers, the finger tracking has been consistently great. I’m hopeful that Valve’s rumored in house games will make better use of this, but for now it’s a “cherry on top” kind of feature.

 

A New Way to Grip: The reason for the “knuckles” development code name is these controllers feature a semi rigid loop which wraps around the back of your hand. Once you slip on the controller and gently cinch it tight, you can simply let go, and the controller stays attached to your hand. The sense of immersion this provides is groundbreaking in games where you’re given virtual hands to control, and it’s something I still notice after the “new and shiny” effect has worn off. Index also has replaced a physical grip button with a complex force sensor that knows if you’re touching the grip, or squeezing it. The act of picking up virtual objects by squeezing the grip, paired with the quality haptics, can really trick your mind into feeling like there’s no controller at all. In the right games, it’s a marvelous experience.

 

 

 

Compatibility: My love for the new controllers is complicated somewhat by the VR gaming software landscape. Longtime VR fans know well that there have been many magical indie games that have come and gone in the last few years, and that in many cases, these games are no longer in development. As such, there’s a host of great experiences out there which were built for Vive wands, NOT Index.

 

Valve has wisely implemented a sophisticated binding utility inside steamVR, which allows you to reprogram the controllers down to an unbelievable level of detail. Seriously, you can actually choose the exact percentage of force required to trigger a “grip.” You can adjust the mode with which variable/analog functions like the triggers or grip operate in, and so much more.

 

The upside is, any Vive compatible title is playable, often to superior effect. The downside is, for older games, you often have to spend a few minutes on first launch adjusting the bindings for each hand, which can take even longer for first timers. Helpfully, developers have the option of creating a custom set of bindings for their old games, which often have superior haptic and finger tracking support beyond what would be possible for an end user to cobble together. Ironically, Oculus games played through Revive seem to have the best of these preset binding profiles!

 

On Joy-Gate: Much has been made of the fact that many knuckles controller sets have issues with the “clicking-in” function of the joysticks. There are variations of this problem; some people’s joysticks don’t register a click when pressed in certain directions; others will register a click in game, but not give a physical clicking sensation or sound.

 

Valve’s official response is that joysticks that don’t actuate will be replaced, but joysticks that lack a substantial clicking sensation when clicked directionally, while otherwise registering input, will not be replaced. This is a frustrating, if unsurprising response for a notable issue.

 

In my personal experience however, I don’t think I would’ve even noticed this problem if reddit didn’t exist. Most of the VR titles I play don’t use directional joystick click, and on my pair of knuckles, the joystick actuates just fine, I just don’t feel much of a click on the top or bottom. The game’s response to my click input (IE that I can see my character start to sprint), is more than enough for me to know then the joystick is clicked. It’s been pretty much a non-issue for me, but it is a legitimate design flaw, and Valve’s response suggests it won’t be completely fixed anytime soon.

 

 

As a no compromise headset, Index requires a somewhat beefy system to make maximum use of its feature set. Frankly, even $3000+ PCs are not going to be able to drive maximum fidelity, 144hz gameplay for beefy games like Elite Dangerous. The good news is that the clever design tricks Valve has used with its display spacing and sub-pixel arrangements mean that you can get a substantially better experience with minimal performance impact relative to a headset with comparable resolution like Vive Pro or Samsung Odyssey.

 

Steam VR also has a brilliant resolution scaler built in, which automatically subsamples or supersamples your resolution based on your current frames per second. What this means is if you have an underpowered graphics card, your frames per second will remain playable, but the display will look blurrier than it would with higher end gear. Personally, I wouldn’t buy an Index if you’re running less than a GTX 1060 (or equivalent) graphics card.

 

 

Valve Index isn’t a wireless headset, and Valve hasn’t announced any wireless adapters in the pipeline. Personally, I’ve found that taking a moment to “route” the cable around your body, whether standing or sitting, makes me forget that the cable is even there 90% of the time.

 

Unfortunately, the limits of physics and technology means that the high refresh rate, high resolution of headsets is simply too much bandwidth for current wireless solutions to handle without image degradation, so be prepared to remain in a wired future if graphical fidelity is something you prize.

 

 

I’ve written previously about my distain for playing Oculus games through the Revive software hack. I don’t love the idea of paying to use walled-garden apps in an unsupported way, but I’ve nevertheless chosen to try Revive again on Index. I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the results, to the point that I’m considering just selling my Rift and playing Oculus exclusives on Index, rather than upgrading it to the Rift S.

 

The big shift here is that the knuckles controllers have complete feature parity with Oculus Touch, so you’re not relegated to emulating joysticks with touch-pads as we were in the past. Revive does still have quirks. Games designed to use a grip button can be a bit touchy when using the knuckles’ force sensor instead, although this can usually be mitigated with clever binding techniques.

 

I’ve also noticed there’s sometimes a delay in haptics response in some Revive games. At this point though, Oculus seems to be comfortable looking the other way so SteamVR users can buy their software, and the advantages of Index’s superior hardware makes suffering the occasional bug or glitch completely worthwhile for me.

 

 

I stopped trying to wear my glasses in HMD’s after I scratched up a Vive’s lenses (along with my glasses). Instead, I’d suggest looking into custom prescription lens inserts for your Index. VR-Lens-Lab, my former recommendation, has yet to offer an Index variant of their product. Instead, I’d suggest trying VROptician, which has been getting good reviews, and seems to have taken the time to design a quality insert that can be used at or near the maximum FOV setting.

 

Older inserts designed for the Vive will technically fit, but the one’s I’ve been using from VR-Lens-Lab fall out too easily to be practical for Index.

 

 

 

 

Elite Dangerous: I still can’t believe how much more immersive Elite has become in Index. On the practical side, I’ve been able to actually lower the amount of super-sampling I was using in settings, thanks to the Index’s sub-pixel improvements. This translates to smoother more reliable frame rates with INCREASED sharpness powered by the same GPU. I’d never realized just how much the motion smooth effects my system was relying on were taking me out of the game until I no longer had to put up with them.

 

The audio in Elite is now stupid good. Listening to the PA system while docked in a station regularly makes me turn around, because it feels like there’s a PA speaker over my shoulder. In dogfights, I can pinpoint my enemy’s relative location based on sound alone. I hear more texture in the rumble of the engines and my maneuvering thrusters than I’ve ever heard before, despite having hundreds of hours in this game (including on speakers).

 

The black levels, with the gamma adjustments, are now a non-issue, and I’m happy to report that I can still enjoy staring off into “the black” when exploring.

 

Brass Tactics: This is one of my favorite Oculus titles, and moving from Rift to Index was shocking. The clarity improvements, being able to clearly see across the game board, actually makes it a bit easier to see the enemy’s strategies in advance, and the improvements in frame rendering has removed the slight queasiness I’d feel after a couple of hours of gliding over the battlefield. Using the “touch to grip” did occasionally have me accidentally grabbing the table when I scraped my fingers against the controllers, but I quickly adjusted to this little quirk, and now find the controller scheme completely natural.

 

Echo VR: Another Revive title, the DLC Echo Combat is simply the best arcade style multiplayer shooter in VR (and one of the best ever). Physically grabbing to pull myself along surfaces is a game changer, and aiming at a distance is much easier with the improved resolution. This Oculus title was actually my favorite experience with the Knuckles controllers, and I’m looking forward to replaying EA’s narrative companion: Lone Echo, before the sequel launches. Pro tip, change your bindings to rely on force-sensing for grip, rather than simply touching the grip area. Prior to this settings change, I’d find myself “sticking” to things on the environment with accidental touch.

 

Star Trek: Bridge Crew: As a lifelong Trek fan, BC is another VR staple of mine. Most of the visuals in this game lie comfortably within a few virtual feet, and the result is startling. Everything in sight looks smooth and sharp, and I felt the need to straighten up a bit in my captain’s chair as my realistically rendered A.I. crew-mates glanced in my direction. Having my virtual hands track me without having to “hold” the controller has been a huge improvement to immersion here.

 

Space Pirate Trainer: A VR arcade classic, SPT is my favorite example of how high refresh rates can make the world around you feel more permanent. For the first time, I’ve been able to spot targets in the distance without noticing any screen door effect, and I’m finding myself enjoying this simple game once again, simply to feel like a badass for a few minutes at a time.

 

 

 

The VR space is in an odd place right now, because every mainstream headset is priced and designed for a completely different section of the market. On the one hand, Oculus Quest is purported to be a fantastic all-in-one mobile HMD, but it’s graphically a PS2 to Index’s PS4.

 

 

On the other hand, you have Rift S, Oculus’s not quite sequel to the original Rift. Rift S is substantially cheaper, and involves next to no setup, but it’s lower resolution, 80hz refresh rate display and low quality built in “pipe” audio solution won’t hold a candle to what you get with Index. Like any big purchase, it comes down to your level of interest. If VR is a minor curiosity, Index is a ton of money to spend, and Rift might be a better fit for you. Conversely, if you’re either a big VR fan, or if you’re captivated by the concept of inhabiting virtual worlds, it doesn’t get better than Index in a complete package.

 

 

Two headsets I haven’t addressed yet are the Windows Mixed Reality based HP Reverb and Samsung Odyssey +. I consider the entire software/hardware platform these are based on to be severely flawed, as the tracking quality from their two-camera systems is reported to be substantially worse than even Rift S’s inside-out system (which uses 5 cameras), and the controller designs are utterly mediocre. The Reverb boasts one major advantage: the highest resolution available in consumer VR. Unfortunately, it’s been plagued by quality control issues, and the general conscensus is that other aspects of it’s optics are so inferior to Index that it’s not worth considering. Tl;dr: Avoid these headsets unless you’re only interested in Simulation experiences, and even then only if something better isn’t in your budget.

 

 

 

I’ve posted about a lot of gadgets on this site. All of them have brought me some joy, but every once in a while, you acquire something that is simply special. Index is one of those purchases that, long after this era of VR has ended, I know I’ll still look back on fondly. From the moment you see the packaging, through to weeks of regular use, you feel the care that Valve has taken to make the best HMD they could.

 

Individually, each set of improvements is noticeably nicer than what’s come before. But the experience of using Index is ultimately more than the sum of its parts, and as Valve continues to iterate on its operating software, new titles release, and graphical power becomes cheaper to come by, it’s an experience that stands to only improve with time.

 

If VR is something you currently use regularly, or you think it could become that, Index is well worth the high asking price.

 

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